AURORA, Colorado It was not by chance that Republicans brought their summer tour of hearings on illegal immigration to this growing community just outside Denver…Not only is Aurora bearing the costs of schooling and providing other services for a significant population of illegal immigrants. It is also in the heart of a swing district …many Republicans, on the defensive here and around the country over the war in Iraq, say they are finding that a hard-line immigration stance resonates not just with conservatives, who have been disheartened on other fronts this year, but also with a wide swath of voters in districts where control of the House could be decided.

Apparently, there are three parties in the fall elections – Democrats, White House Courtiers, and the House Republican leadership:

Leading Republicans, saying they want no compromise on immigration, are encouraging their candidates to keep the focus on border control, as in legislation passed by the House, rather than accept a broader bill that would also clear a path for many illegal immigrants to gain legal status

The angry confrontation thrust the session into the headlines, reminding residents that the issue remained a leading one in the House race between Rick O`Donnell, the Republican nominee, and Ed Perlmutter, the Democrat…The issue remains on voters` minds "because people are trying to keep it on their minds," said Perlmutter, who accused Republicans of staging the hearing for political gain

(The Horror! The Horror!)

Just a few weeks ago politicians and analysts suspected that immigration had lost its political punch in Colorado, after the Legislature enacted a tough immigration overhaul including tighter identification rules for those seeking state government services.
But the issue refuses to die.
At the hearing in Aurora, Governor Bill Owens, a Republican, testified on illegal immigration`s costs to the state, saying the influx was not a driving issue when he first took office but had since risen to the top of Colorado`s concerns